Blade weapons
Blade weapons are weapons of thin metal, beveled to create a piercing point and/or cutting edge, and are typically made of metal such as steel. A handle is mounted to the blade, allowing a user to safely wield it in battle. Some, but not all, blades possess a guard designed to prevent them from slipping through the hands of their users. In combat, a blade may be generally used to slash or thrust; however, this is a last-ditch strategy for a soldier who has unexpectedly run out of ammunition. To this end, blades are usually employed as tools first and weapons second, unless the blade has the explicit purpose of combat or sentry removal in mind. Blade weapons are mainly used by highly trained and skilled personnel. While some soldiers, such as Solid Snake, did not care for blade weapons, others, such as the Cyborg Ninjas, handled them with such speed and proficiency that they were able to deflect bullets, making them almost untouchable by conventional weaponry. Survival knife The survival knife was a weapon used extensively by Naked Snake during the events of Operation Snake Eater. It is a large blade with a sharp point and two edges, one smooth and one serrated. Snake was able to attack enemies, procure food, and remove bullets, crossbow bolts and bullet bees from his body using this very basic (but very useful) item. Snake's survival knife was holstered on a sheath on his right ankle. It weighed 0.5 kg. The Red Army soldiers and FOX members also used survival knives during the San Hieronymo Incident, although they were used in a manner more similar to combat knives.Several of the soldiers that are recruited also come equipped with survival knives when recruited. Users *Naked Snake Two survival knives can be located in Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops; one in the prison within a locked cell, and the other within a pantry within the guest house. The Prison knife's location is mentioned in a spy report, and can be procured by utilizing the ventilation shafts. Removing a bullet via the survival knife in the Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection version of Metal Gear Solid 3 will result in the player being awarded the trophy/achievement "Don't Touch the Sides." CQC knife Unlike the survival knife, which was used largely as a tool, the CQC knife was used for the explicit purpose of close-quarters combat, as its name implies. Naked Snake and The Boss used this stout knife paired with a pistol or, in The Boss' case, the Patriot, to perform CQC when the enemy was too close for firearm use to prove practical. Both The Boss and Naked Snake kept their CQC knives in shoulder sheathes on the left, supposedly for easier access as they both predominantly wielded fire arms with their right hands. Usage of a small knife in conjunction with a firearm was a tactic later employed by Solid Snake in 2014. The CQC knife was fairly small for easy handling, with a cord-wrapped handle and a leather sheath worn across the breast. Users *The Boss *Naked Snake Ueberlebensmesser.jpg|CQC knife menu icon in Metal Gear Solid 3. Combat knife A combat knife is, unlike the survival knife, intended solely for combat and designed as such. As combat knives are often unfavored by soldiers in the field, who opt instead for a knife that can be used more for utility purposes, fighting knives are rarely seen. During the Virtuous Mission, Major Ocelot of GRU, after his entire unit was knocked out by Naked Snake when he attempted to interfere with Snake retrieving Nikolai Stepanovich Sokolov (as well as realizing that Snake was not The Boss), as well as being lectured by Snake about the flaws of his strategy, and suggesting that his style was better suited for a revolver, attempted to stab Snake in retribution for the lecture, before being knocked down again. A week later, during Operation Snake Eater, Ocelot used the same combat knife to hold EVA at knifepoint, although he shortly thereafter lost it to EVA after she managed to break free and also knock Ocelot back with her bike. In addition, Sigint also developed a combat knife for Snake to use during Operation Snake Eater, but because Snake was not fond of the fact that the handle had been hollowed out for placement of small tools, it was discarded before he left for the mission. During the First Liberian Civil War, the Army of the Devil's commander, Solidus Snake, was seen holding a knife at his desk. He later used the knife to slit the throat of another soldier who was currently being interrogated as a demonstration to Jack regarding how blade weapons were more "honorable" compared to guns. One of Jack's nicknames, Jack the Ripper, was also in reference to his proficiency with knives and other bladed weapons. During the 1990s, FOXHOUND developed its own close quarters combat knife, which it used on missions. During the Tanker Incident in 2007, the Gurlukovich Mercenaries utilized combat knives to stealthily eliminate the Marine skeleton crew on board the USS Discovery, by slitting their throats or stabbing/slashing them from behind. Dead Cell member Vamp utilized a combat knife as his primary close-quarters weapon, while using his throwing knives to deal with distant enemies. During the Guns of the Patriots Incident, he used an MSC Valkyrie blade from Strider Knives. In the same capacity and event, Raiden used combat knives as the Cyborg Ninja, which were inspired by the Yoroi Toshi from Warren Thomas. In the non-canon game Snake's Revenge, Solid Snake used a combat knife as one of his weapons. The cover artwork for the Japanese manual for Metal Gear Solid also depicted Snake with a combat knife, although he was not seen using one in the game itself. Users *GRU *Red Army *FOX *Peace Sentinel *Zanzibar LandMetal Gear 2: Solid Snake - User's Manual, Konami Corporation (1990). *Gurlukovich Mercenaries *Vamp *Raiden Unconfirmed usage During the Shadow Moses Incident, Solid Snake made use of a U.S. Marines issue Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife, which he stole from Johnny Sasaki's office after escaping the medical facility, although he used it more as a tool than a weapon. Machete The machete is a large cleaver-like cutting tool. It is typically used for cutting down jungle brush and overgrowth, but is also sometimes used as an offensive weapon. Users *Null *FROGS Spetsnaz throwing knives Spetsnaz throwing knives were weapons perfected by the Spetsnaz soldiers of the Soviet Union. They were predominately used by Gene during the San Hieronymo Incident. In addition, some of his FOX unit soldiers, as well as Red Army recruits, were outfitted with these. Big Boss's resistance later began to develop their own Spetsnaz throwing knives. Much later, Vamp would use throwing knives during the Big Shell Incident and the Guns of the Patriots Incident. During the latter, he and the FROGS used the model MG from Strider Knives as a throwing blade. Users *Gene *FOX unit *Red Army *Vamp *FROGS Spetsnaz ballistic knife Used by Olga Gurlukovich during the Tanker Incident, this weapon was known as the NRS-2 (NRS = Nozh Razvedchika Strelayushiy, or Scout Shooting Knife). It was primarily a stabbing weapon, having no serrations or other built-in tools such as a wire-cutter. It did have a very unique feature, however: the handle concealed a single round of ammunition (7.62x42 SP-4) which could be shot out at an opponent with lethal accuracy. Solid Snake, upon surviving the tactic, deduced that Olga was somehow connected to Spetsnaz based on this distinctive attack alone. User *Olga Gurlukovich High-frequency blade The high-frequency blade was a sword reinforced by a powerful alternating current and resonated at extremely high frequencies, allowing it to loosen the atomic bonds between atoms. Raiden was one of the most frequent users of the high-frequency blade. Use of high-frequency blades exploded with the growth and prominence of cyborg armies. Stun knife The Stun Knife, developed by the CIA, was used by Solid Snake during the Guns of the Patriots Incident in 2014. It was able to be used directly as a stabbing weapon, or utilized for CQC. In addition, the Stun Knife had the ability to unleash a powerful yet non-lethal electric charge through the blade, allowing Snake to stun enemy soldiers instead of killing them. The electricity is generated from the back of the blade. This technique was used on Snake when Liquid Ocelot used CQC to force Snake to stab himself. Users *Solid Snake Upon recruiting Old Snake in Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus, the stun knife can also be procured. The Stun Knife's design was derived from the shocknife, which is a training knife, although without cutting ability. Bowie knife The Bowie knife is a knife that was popularized due to its usage by Colonel James Bowie in the Sandbar Duel during the early 19th century. It is a broad-bladed, heavy weapon with a prominent clip-point tip. Eventually, most Southern States banned the knife, although it is still considered a valuable collector's item. Because of his superhuman strength and speed, Gene preferred this weapon over the usage of guns, and used it to stab one of his soldiers when he instigated a mass riot among them shortly after Metal Gear RAXA was destroyed. He later attempted to throw it at Elisa/Ursula after they interfered with his attempts at launching the ICBMG, but she effortlessly deflected it away with her mind, as she had predicted what he would do, although he managed to kill her when he used his superhuman speed to compensate. Finally, he utilized the knife during his fight with Big Boss. It was also embossed with the Japanese characters symbolizing infinity on its sheath, and Gene carried multiple Bowie knives, throwing three at a time.Metal Gear Solid 4 Database, Kojima Poductions (2008). "Infinity Bowie Knife" http://natmal.net/mgsdb/?enc&id=300 Users *Gene Plasma sword A Plasma sword was a type of non-existent weapon mentioned by Doktor by the mid-to-late 2010s. It was stronger than an HF Blade, in theory.Doktor briefly alludes to a plasma sword in an optional Codec conversation during the Abkhazian Coup, relating to the custom cyborgs. Behind the scenes In Snake's Revenge, when showing Solid Snake, he is seen with a combat knife partially unsheathed, although after pressing the start button, it is sheathed in. Gallery IMG 0150.JPG|Spetsnaz knife in Portable Ops. IMG 0148.JPG|Survival knife in Portable Ops. Appearances *''Snake's Revenge'' (non-canon) *''Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty'' *''Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater'' *''Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops'' (Plus) *''Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots'' *''Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker'' *''Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance '' Notes and references See also * High-frequency blade * [[List of weapons in Metal Gear Solid 4|List of weapons in Metal Gear Solid 4]] Category:Melee weapons